JWQ Showcase 2017

Monday, June 8, 2015

Leading Azerbaijani jazz pianist Emil Afrasiyab
wowed jazz fans and critics alike with his barnstorming performance at
this year's Festival Jazz à Saint-Germain-des-Prés. His appearance was
sponsored by the French office of The European Azerbaijan Society
(TEAS).

Leading Azerbaijani jazz pianist Emil Afrasiyab has dazzled 380 jazz
aficionados in Paris with his dexterity and innovation on the second
night of the prestigious 15th Festival Jazz à Saint-Germain-des-Prés.
On 29 May, the audience included H.E. Elchin Amirbayov, Azerbaijani
Ambassador to France; bass guitarist Kyle Eastwood, son of legendary
film star Clint; author Michel Contat, a leading literary and jazz
critic; and Alain Kassimatis, the renowned jazz producer. The French
office of The European Azerbaijan Society (TEAS) sponsored the concert,
having done so at the previous edition of the festival, when the
spotlight was directed towards pianist Isfar Sarabski.Born in Baku in 1982, Emil is a major artist amongst the new
generation of Azerbaijani jazz performers. He specialises in the
synthesis of jazz with Azerbaijani mugham, both of which feature a high
degree of improvisation and provide great scope for personal expression.
His work is notable for its contrasts in intonation, and fluctuating
harmonics and rhythms, more commonly found in classical music.The set began with Emil’s self-penned 'Two Worlds'. After a delicate
and rhapsodic solo introduction, Emil increased the tempo, running up
and down the piano keyboard, his music incorporating the Eastern
harmonies and microtones found in mugham, being carried along by the
propulsive polyrhythmic drumming of Raphaël Pannier. The improvisations
even included a brief nod to J.S. Bach and his 'Air on the G String'. This was followed by a version of Azerbaijani jazz-mugham pioneer
Vagif Mustafzadeh’s 'March', which included Alexandre Madeline on tenor
saxophone. This began with Emil’s rhapsodic introduction, after which
Coltrane disciple Alexandre gave an exploration of the main theme prior
to its deconstruction. Emil and Raphaël then took up the challenge,
daring each other on to more tangential improvisations. Emil held the
transfixed audience in reverent silence following his delicate
conclusion to the piece.Emil then performed 'Aziza', his own composition, dedicated to Vagif
Mustafazadeh’s daughter of the same name, who is renowned as a jazz
singer/pianist in her own right. The tempo of this piece gradually
speeded to dizzying levels, and provided Raphaël with the chance to
demonstrate his full range of percussive techniques. Emil regards all
musicians in his quartet as equals, his piano remaining silent as
Raphaël and bass guitarist Antoine Katz coaxed each other into new,
unchartered waters of improvisation. Emil then returned, upping the
tempo to an exciting and devastating level. As he wiped the perspiration
from his brow, the rapturous audience shouted “Bravo”, hoping for
another piece.They were rewarded with variations on the main theme of the
Azerbaijani traditional dance 'Shalakho', written in the challenging
time signature of 6/8. This saw Alexandre’s saxophone take on the role
of the traditional balaban flute, before wildly entering the realms of
free jazz and call-and-response dialogue with the percussion of Raphaël.Initially, Emil’s pianistic skills were solely heard in the borders
of his home country. However, this changed in 2011, when he received the
Public Prize at the Montreux Jazz Festival, and in 2012 he went to
study performance and composition at the Berklee College of Music in the
US, where he now resides.The second half of the concert comprised a performance by the
septuagenarian jazz-rock pioneer Aldo Romano and the other members of
his trio.The concert came in the middle of a three-date French festival tour
by Emil’s quartet that began on 27 May with a performance at the
inaugural Sunnyside Festival in Reims, attended by around 150 people,
including Pascal Labelle, Deputy Mayor of Reims in charge of Culture and
Ayaz Gojayev, Cultural Advisor to the Azerbaijani Embassy in France.
The tour will conclude on 7 September with the opening concert of the
Colmar Jazz Festival. TEAS France is sponsoring Emil’s participation in
all three festivals.To see and hear Emil performing Aziza at the 2013 Baku International Jazz Festival, go to http://bit.ly/emilaziza.